Tessa Adams – Chronic Renal Failure

Tessa Adams – Chronic Renal Failure

Patient Information, Medical History and Blood Test Results

Breed: CrossAge: 8 year oldSex: FemaleName: Tessa AdamsReason for visit:
Tessa was presented to us with chronic renal failure

Vet Diagnosis
Owner has been notified by their vet that no further treatment is advised for Tessa as she is now considered terminally ill and given ~3 months to live. They have prescribed a KD diet of dry kibble.

Overall health assessment
Her kidneys have scanned and measured twice the normal size. She was presenting with incontinence, constant urination, urinary tract infections and frequent drinking.
Her bloods are showing significant change and she has already lost a few kilos recently. She was vomiting and not drinking very much. Vet has her on heart blood pressure tablets as well as antibiotics anti inflamatory, anti nausea. Since being on the antibiotics she has stabilised since starting treatment end of Jan. But hasn’t gotten better and her bloods indicate that her kidneys are further deteriorating.

Medical history review
Tessa is hypothryoid. 7.7
Urine pH levels are ok
Notes: Tessa has been on the drip on 2 occasions and since her vet treatment she hasn’t thrown up. Her Lipase (pancreatic enzyme) is also up so pancreas is showing signs of disease and struggling to perform. I suspect this was contributing to her nausea and vomiting.

Current vet prescribed diet
Royal canine kidney. Rice veg and renal can food.

Blood test results – 27th January 2016

ALB – 17 Low

BUN – 19.2 High

Creatine – 124 High

TP (Total Protein) – 54 Low

PHOS – 2.64 High

2nd Blood test results – 4th February 2016

BUN – 22.2 High and increasing

Creatine – 418 High and increasing

TP – 52 Still low

PHOS – 2.64 High

Bloods also show that Tessa was Hypothyroid as her T4 levels were very low

Naturopathic Treatment Schedule

Consultation 1 (6th February 2016) Assessment: When meeting Tessa, her weight was good even though she may have lost a few kilo’s in the past weeks. She was still active and I believed she may have a good chance of recovery with the correct medical regime.Notes: At this stage I chose not to treat her Hypothyroidism as it may correct itself after her kidney’s improved.Prescribed medicines: Tess will be on a treatment plan containing 4 medicines initiallyPrescribed diet: Tessa is put onto a raw natural diet mix of meat, meaty bones and vegetables. Need to keep in mind her protein requirements due to kidney disease.Session conclusion: I have asked for Tessa to have a blood test after 1 week of treatment when we will assess the treatment plan from the results.

Notes: BUN levels have continued increasing, Creatine has decreased significantly, ALB has returned to a normal range, PHOS has increased and TP has decreased.Prescribed medicines: Tessa will continue on the same treatment regime of 4 medicines.Prescribed diet: Tessa will continue on the same raw natural diet mix of meat, meaty bones and vegetables. It has been noted that she is loving the new diet and there have been no issues in her switching foods.Session conclusion: Overall, the blood tests have provided mixed results but it is still very early in the treatment plan. As it has only been one week.
I have asked for Tessa to continue on the same treatment plan and diet and to have a further blood test in 1 week.

Creatine – 301 Slight increase but initial decrease was so significant, believe it will stabilise and continue to drop

TP – 48 Still low

PHOS – 2.64 Stabilised

Notes: BUN levels have continued increasing, Creatine levels have increased slightly but have stabilised, TP is still low, PHOS levels have returned to normal range.Prescribed medicines: Tessa will continue on the same treatment regime of 4 medicines.Prescribed diet: As Tessa’s BUN levels have increased significantly to 37.6 we have changed her diet to reduce the protein intake. A decreased meat portion with a substitute of raw eggs. Even though eggs are thought to be high in protein, in comparison to meat they are much lower but will still provide good nutrition to her diet. This dietary change has made a great and positive impact to her Bun Levels and it is noted that she is still very happy with the new diet.Session conclusion: Overall, the blood tests have shown improvement in BUN and PHOS levels which is a good result so far.
I have asked for Tessa to continue on the same treatment plan and new diet and to have a further blood test in 1 week.

Notes: BUN levels have continued to decrease, Creatine has had another major decrease and is now below 300 which is an excellent result. TP is slightly lower but has stabilised. Kidney size has been retested and they have now returned to normal size which is an excellent result.
Whilst Tessa had her blood test the vet has performed a health assessment. They were unaware that Tessa has been on a naturopathic treatment plan but were aware of the diet change. Vet believed that Tessa had a miracle recovery and wanted her to be put on KD dry kibble diet again. Owner has now explained that she is on naturopathic treatment and will continue with treatment and natural diet. Vet understands and after seeing Tessa’s improved health will continue to do testing and happy with current treatment to continue.Prescribed medicines: Tessa will continue on the same treatment regime of 4 medicines.Prescribed diet: Tessa will continue on the same raw natural diet mix of meat, meaty bones and vegetables. It has been noted that she is continuing to love the new diet and there have been no issues in her switching foods.Session conclusion: Overall, the blood tests have provided excellent results in Tessa’s recovery but there is still further improvements to come.
I have asked for Tessa to continue on the same treatment plan and diet and to have a further blood test in 1 week.

Consultation 5 (4th March 2016) Assessment: Tessa has been into the clinic as she has had a setback in her recovery. Whilst out walking at the local park, Tessa got loose and ran rampant. This has unfortunately made her quite unwell. She has been panting very hard and has persisted over the week and she would also at times shake uncontrollably.Notes: I believe she had become seriously dehydrated. I have advised that she needs to have large amounts of water added to her food to help rehydrate. Due to the setback her dosages for each of the medicines have been increased by 50% in case her kidneys have been effected negatively.Prescribed medicines: Tessa will continue on the same treatment regime of 4 medicines with a 50% dosage increase.Prescribed diet: Tessa is to continue on her new diet regime including eggs.Session conclusion: Tessa’s medications have been increased due to the local park episode. A further set of blood tests are to be taken in a few days to find out if there are any further health issues from the park.

Notes: Tessa’s blood test results are in and have provided excellent results with many returning to normal range.
Most importantly, Tessa has not had any adverse reactions to the recent park episode. The vet has checked her over and she is ok. Bloods were redone to assess any kidney damage. (10th March bloods)
There is NO kidney damage. In fact, the results have significantly improved. We believe the increased dosage of her medications has not only prevented damage but has escalated the kidney healing process.
T4’s have been retested and they have returned back to normal without medication, but Tessa’s moods can still swing and she can often have low moments. I believe her to be subclinical hypothyroid and have put her on Thyrocalm to try and improve her mood swings, highs and lows.Prescribed medicines: : Tessa will continue on the same treatment regime of 4 medicines plus Thyrocalm for her thyroid.Prescribed diet: Tessa is to continue on her new diet regime including eggs.Session conclusion: To date Tessa’s recovery has been significant and I do not believe she should be considered terminally ill any longer. She will continue on her diet and medication plan but I will not need to see Tessa for further visits unless there are any significant setbacks to her recovery.
Her bloods continue to improve and she will be on reduced treatment for the rest of her life. Once her BUN and Creatine levels are back to normal range her kidney medications will be reduced by 50% and this will maintain her kidneys, stopping the disease from reoccurring.

Overall Conclusion: Tessa was brought to me with such severe health issues that she had been deemed terminally ill and no further treatment would be administered.

After only 2 months of naturopathic treatment Tessa’s health has improved significantly enough that she is no longer considered terminally ill. The blood tests have provided excellent results and prove that her health is returning to normal levels.

Tessa will continue with her new diet plan and she will be on treatment for the rest of her life. Once her BUN and Creatine levels are back to a normal range her kidney medications will be reduced by 50% and will maintain her kidneys, stopping the disease from reoccurring.